Hidden in a valley of Toyama Prefecture, Japan, lies a small town full of human statues called Fureai no Sekibutsu no Sato (ふれあい石仏の里).
The Fureai Sekibutsu no Sato is what remains of the endeavors of Mutsuo Furukawa.
The wealthy businessman owned many restaurants and hospitals in the area and commissioned the many sculptures starting in the late 80’s. Originally depicting many Buddhist statues and deities, Furukawa went on to commission sculptures of the people close to him and of those who worked in his businesses.
Immortalized in stone, the fields are open to the public so everyone can enjoy a peaceful walk in nature.
The area is still maintained every two weeks by local staff that knew Furukawa, who passed away around 2012(3).
Though many try to find a deeper meaning in the statues, surprisingly there is none. Just the ideas of a man who wanted to create a popular area for everyone to enjoy and relax.
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Make sure to also check out Norm’s (Tokyo Lens) channel here:
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Location Info:
Fureai Sekibutsu no Sato – Village Where You Can Meet Statues, Toyama, 939-2214
〒939-2214 富山県富山市
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*Special Note*
It may be obvious, but I spent more time as a photographer during this visit than I did as a videographer. It shows because I’m rarely in “front” of the camera. But, what do you think? Should I appear more on camera?
I also noticed that I wanted to aim for a bit more of a peaceful scenery while I was finishing up editing. Even though the statues are given a creepy background by websites, the place is actually very nice when the sun is out and was rather pleasant to visit.
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Want to help? Please feel free to add subtitles to this video. Any bit of help is super appreciated!
AloJapan.com